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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. cell — in biology
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. content — the amount
  5. mug — a face
  6. content — happy
  7. mug — a cup
  8. cell — a phone
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. cap — a hat
  11. chair — a leader
  12. cap — of ice
  13. game — a match
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. mark — a grade
  17. game — wild animals
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — to come from
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. cap — a lid
  24. mug — to rob

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com